Builder wants cash-in-hand

if a trades person asks for cash he usually does not intend to declare it to the tax man. this is not always the case but by asking for cash he will not be expecting for you to ask for an invoice. If you (rightly) ask for an invoice then the trader knows he will need to declare the job to the inland revenue so he will therefor need to add tax to his price to cover this. this sounds to me like such a small job that the builder decided to offer to do it for cash not intending to declare it. the fact that he did this does not necessarily mean his work will be dodgy, he was merely trying to pull a fast one on the inland revenue (not you). having asked for an invoice he will have to include vat. this has no reflection on the quality of his work. however you were right to insist on one and he legally needs to provide one. a lot of clients will ask a tradesman for a "cash" price, expecting to not receive an invoice knowing the tradesman will not charge vat and therefor be cheaper. by asking him for an invoice you have simply made him have to declare any earnings on the job and therefor charge vat on top. don't worry about it.

Despite taking cash from a client there is no rational reason why the trades person would not issue an invoice with the additional reassurance to the customer that his/her work will be guaranteed against any faults that might occur within a given period of time i.e. 12 months. This is not an unreasonable expectation of any customers regardless of whether they pay in cash or bank transfer/cheque. Transparency and reassurance is everything in business.

They can add VAT only if they are VAT registered. Cash in hand it's not always to "pull as fast one", but sometimes it is to make sure they get paid (so the other party doesn't pull the same fast one) :) If you're not comfortable then get another trade in. This way no one is disappointed

The other answer is correct in regard to the fact that it does not reflect on his skill level or tradesmanship. However, you need to consider how it reflects on him as a person(remember that you will be allowing him onto your home) and also reflects on h.as a business person. If you asked him for a cash price, then you are happy to be involved in him trying to surpass the inland revenue, which would reflect in you both. But you didn't. In fact you requested an invoice which reflects well on you, and he assumed underhanded tactics on your behalf. The main point being, if he is happy to assume to cut corners on the pricing, where else might he be willing to work at below par levels? Agreed or not. I always work with being open and honest and upfront with everything, it's served me well so far. I hope you get it sorted. Regards,